


supernova

by missmaier



Series: right beside you [2]
Category: The Walking Dead (Telltale Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Nightmares, Post-Canon, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, some good ol flangst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-16
Updated: 2019-02-16
Packaged: 2019-10-29 19:08:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17813795
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/missmaier/pseuds/missmaier
Summary: Louis is unable to sleep after his time at the delta, but James is there to help.





	supernova

**Author's Note:**

> hey!! just to clarify, this is set after my fic "a sign of the times" and before "illuminated" but can be read separately. its Louis after the Violet route with his tongue missing but he is learning sign language with the other kids, James included.
> 
> and to reiterate, in this au James is 20 and Louis is 18.
> 
> (before) a sign of the times: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17446409
> 
> (after) illuminated: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17775824

Louis kept having nightmares.

He’d had them every so often before Delta, but now they were… much more constant. Most nights found him gasping for air and in a cold sweat. There hadn’t been a single night after the boat when he’d slept well, and the exhaustion was starting to get to him.

Louis knew he was getting better, but that he’d never really heal. The sign language lessons with the other kids were certainly helping, and whenever he got a moment alone he flipped through the book himself and practiced until his hands hurt. But he couldn’t erase Lilly’s sadistic smile from her mind, or Dorian’s deep voice, or Aasim and Omar’s yelling. He didn’t think he ever would.

One night, though, was worse than the rest. About three weeks after he’d gotten back to Ericson’s, he woke up making the closest noise to a scream he was capable of. He couldn’t get his breathing under control no matter what he did, because he’d just hear Lilly’s laugh echo in his ears every time he did. Louis pulled his knees to his chest, rocking himself back and forth and letting out sobs into his knees.

A knock on his door startled him out of his stupor. “Louis?” Came a voice from the other side of the door, and he instantly recognized it as James. He’d forgotten they’d moved him in the room next door, and he’d probably heard the whole thing. His suspicions were confirmed when James opened the door a crack and saw Louis sitting on the bed in the state he was in. James approached tentatively. “Are you okay?”

Louis shook his head, and James sat down at the end of his bed. “Can I sit here?” At Louis’ nod, he continued. “Do you… want to talk about it?”

Louis unloaded. He couldn’t speak, but he could sign. He was signing quickly and frantically, and even in his half awake state he knew that the movements were sloppy and he wasn’t making any sense. But he didn’t care. _I saw her face again, I heard her voice, I could almost feel the pain I felt that day, it was so real, it was so real-_

“Whoa, hey. Slow down,” James grabbed Louis’ hands, then seemed to think better of it and quickly let go. Louis found himself missing the warmth. “I don’t understand.”

Louis signed slower this time. _I had a nightmare._ James nodded.

“I figured as much,” James crossed his legs. “I used to get them too. Every single night. For weeks.”

_About what?_

“My people. What they’ve done. What… what _I’ve_ done.” James’ voice grew dark, and Louis decided it was best not to press the issue. “I still do sometimes, but… not once since I came here.” James offered him a small smile. “You’ve got a lot of people that care about you. You should let them help.”

Louis shook his head. _I know, but I don’t want to worry them._

James sighed. “What’s worrying them is that they can see that you’re hurting, but you’re pushing them away.”

_I’m not-_

“You _are,_ ” James said firmly, and Louis let his hands drop into his lap. “They don’t say it out loud, but I can see their expressions. Clementine, Violet, AJ, the others.” Louis avoided James’ gaze. He hadn’t missed the looks from his friends. It twisted his gut whenever he saw the sadness behind Violet’s eyes or the sympathetic smiles from Clementine. He didn’t want them to worry.

Louis raised his hands, but didn’t say anything for a moment. _I don’t know how to move on_ , he eventually signed, and James nodded.

“You don’t, not really,” James said. He hesitantly hovered his hand over Louis’ knee for a moment before resting it there, and the touch was more comforting than Louis cared to admit. “You can’t move on, but you can move forward. And you can’t do it alone.”

 _Thank you, James_. Louis had given James a nickname in sign language a couple weeks ago; the letter J combined with the walking sign. Walker. Louis leaned forward, wrapping his arms around James’ shoulders.

James stiffened, and for a moment Louis was afraid he crossed a boundary, but the other boy’s arms eventually wrapped around his waist. “You’re welcome, Louis.”

Louis pulled away and leaned back on his bed, letting out a shuddering sigh. James moved to get up, but hesitated. “Do you want me to stay?”

Louis thought for a moment. It would certainly help if he wasn’t alone, and he’d always found James’ presence to be calming. Well, after he got over the whole wearing skin thing. At Louis’ nod, James sat back down, patting Louis’ ankle comfortingly. “Good night, Louis.” He signed it as he said it, and Louis signed it back, turning over to fall asleep.

James stayed there the whole night, and Louis didn’t have another nightmare. And if the two woke up next to each other entangled on Louis’ small twin bed, it was no one’s business but their own.


End file.
